Change is possible
Many people think that it is not possible to change their mindset. That the only option they have is to learn to live with it.
This is not correct, because everyone does indeed have a choice.
“Keep reminding yourself: I get what I think about, whether I want it or not.”
~ Wayne Dyer, American self-help author
Neuroplasticity
Scientific research shows that our brains are neuroplastic. This means that the neural networks in our brains can continue to grow, change and reorganize throughout our lives.
This is explained by Hebb’s law, named after the neuropsychologist Donald Webb.
Hebb’s law
In short, Hebb’s law is often described as “Cells that fire together wire together”.
Hebb’s law states that the synaptic connections in our brain are strengthened when two or more neurons are activated at the same time.
Our brains are constantly looking to save energy and increase efficiency. When different neural processes are frequently activated at the same time, it is more efficient and takes less energy to make one process by fusing the brain cells involved.
Just belief
To change your mindset, you just have to believe it is possible and train yourself to focus your attention and awareness on the positive things in life.
When you do this, you are also able to form new neural connections and create a different mindset and way of thinking.
“The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change his future by merely changing his attitude.”
~ Oprah Winfrey, American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and philanthropist
What do you choose?
When you are willing to learn and apply the techniques, you can change your mindset. This will give you a more positive attitude to life, making you better able to achieve your goals and realize your dreams.
“If you’re not positive energy, you’re negative energy.”
~ Mark Cuban, highly successful entrepreneur, television personality and media owner
Change is easy
Changing your mindset is not difficult at all. This becomes clear from the following story.
The White and Black Wolf
A group of Cherokee children gathered around their grandfather. They were filled with excitement and curiosity. That day, there had been quite a tumultuous conflict between two adults and their grandfather was called in to mediate.
The children were eager to hear what he had to say about it. One of the children popped a question to the grandfather that was puzzling him.
“Grandfather, why do people fight?”
“Well” the old man replied “we all have two wolves inside us, you see. They are in our chest and these wolves are constantly fighting each other”.
The eyes of the children had grown big by now.
“In our chests too, grandfather?” asked another child. “And in your chest too?” asked a third one.
He nodded, “Yes, in my chest too.” He sure had their attention now. The grandfather continued. “There is a White Wolf and a Black Wolf. The Black Wolf inside us is filled with fear, anger, envy, jealousy, greed, and arrogance. The White Wolf is filled with peace, love, hope, courage, humility, compassion, and faith. They battle constantly”.
Then he stopped. The child that asked the initial question continued. “But grandfather, which wolf wins?”
The old Cherokee replied…
“That’s simple… it’s the wolf we feed the most.
The black wolf in the story is your negative mindset. It is your negative assumptions and expectations and all the negative thoughts and feelings that you have about yourself, your life and the world. The white wolf is your positive mindset, and all your positive thoughts and feelings.
Feed your white wolf
To develop a positive mindset, you just need to feed your white wolf more than your black wolf. And by keeping a positive diary, you are feeding your white wolf.
As a result, your positive thoughts and feelings increase and your subconscious assumptions and expectations automatically become more positive over time.
This is confirmed by several independent scientific studies. For example, in a study where participants had to write down five positive things a day for two weeks, there was a noticeable improvement in their mindset and mental well-being. And this improvement lasted for several months.
See the article “Scientific research” in the positive diary blog topic for more information.
Lasting change is hard
While it is quite easy to make small adjustments to our mindset, making big, lasting changes is more challenging.
When our mindset is many years old, our brains have had a long time to mold to our mindset.
As a result, our assumptions and expectations have penetrated deep into our subconscious, and most of the time we are not consciously aware of them.
Training and discipline
Changing the deep-seated assumptions and expectations of our mindset takes time and requires training and discipline. This is not something you can do in one or two weeks.
You have to compare it to how babies learn to walk. This is a process that takes months and consists of several steps.
Before babies can walk on their own, they must first learn to roll over, sit, crawl, stand up and cruise.
Changing a deep-seated negative mindset into a positive mindset is also a process that takes several months and consists of several steps.
And keeping a positive diary is a good way to start this process, as it forces you to shift your attention and awareness to your positive thoughts, feelings, and behaviors on a daily basis.
Patience
Lack of patience is an important reason why many people think they cannot change their mindset. They deliberately try it for a few weeks and then give up because they don’t see immediate results and fall back to their habitual ways of thinking.
This is similar to a baby expecting to walk independently after a couple of weeks and giving up when he or she does nor succeed immediately.
To make big, lasting changes to your mindset you have to be as patient as a baby. And every time you fall, don’t give up but get right back up and try again.
So when you decide to change your mindset, you need to keep it up for at least several months.
While you may think that this is too much effort and you don’t feel like doing it, remember that this is the best investment you can ever make.
“Ultimately, there’s one investment that supersedes all others: Invest in yourself. Nobody can take away what you’ve got in yourself, and everybody has potential they haven’t used yet.”
~ Warren Buffett, one of the most successful investors in the world
Conclusion
Developing a more positive mindset is the best investment you can make. No one can take this away from you and you always carry it with you.
By adjusting your mindset you can increase your self-confidence, become healthier, experience less stress, deal better with setbacks, become happier, and have more energy and perseverance.
This ensures that you are better able to achieve your goals, making you more successful and better able to realize your dreams.